Members of the community of North Bergen, NJ told the news station the girl’s father was serving with the armed forces in Germany and was immediately sent home when he learned her condition was deteriorating over the weekend.

“She was a great girl. She was the light of their life and the father was all about that baby,” said Marta Claudio, a parent of one of Nevaeh’s classmates. The mother added that the dad “loves his daughter to death.”

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help pay for the child’s funeral services.

Neveah’s passing will be added to the list of pediatric flu-related deaths that continues to grow from week to week. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 63 children have died of influenza in last Friday’s press briefing.